FBI, ” on occasion, law enforcement officers take additional steps by conducting surveillance on groups of protestors, collecting information or intelligence about protestors, or commencing an investigation directed at members of a group. Although, in many situations, these law enforcement activities may be permissible, they carry the potential to raise important constitutional and public concerns to which law enforcement agencies should be sensitive.”

Fox reports that the FBI has long warned of potential dangers posed by “anarchist extremism,” particularly during global summits and big events hosted in the United States.

The federal law enforcement official told Fox News there is “no credible threat” tied to international terrorism, but there is always concern that big events such as the political conventions are “attractive targets.”

According to Government Security News, which covers homeland security and IT issues, the behavioral recognition software from BRS Labs will be deployed in video cameras anywhere from a few block to a few miles around the convention sites.

Law enforcement officials are concerned about possible violence by anarchist extremists at the upcoming Republican and Democratic national conventions, according to an intelligence bulletin prepared by the FBI and Department of Homeland Security.

The seven-page bulletin, obtained by WBTV, outlines information about potential anarchist extremism-related violent criminal activity and threats to public safety during the national political conventions, which start next week in Tampa.

At one point, the Joint Intelligence Bulletin states that anarchists could try to use improvised explosive devices.

“Anarchist extremists and other domestic extremist groups probably lack the capability to overcome the heightened security measures at the RNC and DNC venues,” the report states, “but could target nearby infrastructure, including local businesses or transportation systems and law enforcement personnel.”

The report states that a majority of anarchist activities during major events usually involve acts of property damage, vandalism and trespassing. Past extremists have escalated to violent tactics such as assault and arson.

According to the unclassified document, individuals were reported coordinating criminal actions against the Bank of America in Charlotte, via a free downloadable software application, in May 2012.

A spokesperson for the Charlotte office of the FBI told WBTV that she could not comment on the document.

“I can tell you the FBI utilizes a variety of means to communicate with law enforcement and share information to assist in their overall situational awareness.” she told WBTV.

The document notes anarchists have a history of trying to disrupt major events.

“During past national and international political and economic events, anarchist extremists have blocked streets, intersections, and bridges to disrupt or impede local business operations and public transportation access and, in some instances have initiated violent confrontations with police,” the document states.

“FBI and DHS assess with high confidence anarchist extremists will target similar infrastructure in Tampa and Charlotte, with potentially significant impacts on public safety and transportation,” according to the law enforcement alert.

The FBI routinely issues intelligence bulletins in advance of many major events to warn local law enforcement of possible security concerns.

The bulletin says that law enforcement agencies believe most protesters at the conventions will obey laws and not commit violent acts, but that anarchists are the most likely exceptions.

The notice warns of certain things state and local law enforcement should be on the watch for.

Those include anarchists acquiring materials that could be used to make improvised explosive devices, obtaining firearms training and preparing for violence with groups they oppose — such as white supremacists.

Anarchists often research potential targets, according to the bulletin.

“Extremists will likely use secure communication methods and social networking sites, Internet chat rooms, message boards, and mobile devices such as smart phones to coordinate and facilitate violence or criminal activity,” the document states.

The report states that while the FBI and Homeland Security believe a majority of protesters at the DNC will be lawful and non-violent, the RNC will be a test for the extremists.

“The perceived success or failure of the anarchist extremists actions leading up to the conventions, as well as at the earlier RNC in Tampa, will likely impact the strategies of anarchist extremists preparing to disrupt the DNC.”

A hacking group affiliated with Anonymous took responsibility for temporarily crippling the Chicago Police and NATO websites today, proving authorities now have more than just street protests to worry about on the first day of the military alliance’s summit.

Chicago police are working with federal authorities to investigate the attack and the extent of it, the Chicago Tribune reported.

NATO has not confirmed it was the victim of a cyber attack. All three sites now appear to be running as usual.

A lengthy statement from the hacking group, which called itself antis3curityops, was posted on Cyber War News, declaring: “We are in your harbor Chicago, and you will not forget us.”

A Twitter user affiliated with Anonymous tweeted “Tango Down” with a link to the Chicago Police Department’s website. “Reason: for violation of #humanrights,” @Anon_Central wrote.

Read Rest Here
The attack was orchestrated using DDoS, a method in which numerous systems attack a single target website until it is forced to shut down.

‘Anonymous’ member admits hacking UK abortion site
(AFP) – 2 days ago
LONDON — A member of the international computer hacking group Anonymous pleaded guilty in court in Britain on Saturday to breaking into and defacing the website of an abortion service.

James Jeffery, 27, said he targeted the site because he disagreed with his sister’s decision to terminate her pregnancy, Westminster Magistrates Court in central London heard.

He stole around 10,000 records with the details of women who had registered with the site, and replaced the logo of the British Pregnancy Advisory Service with the Anonymous symbol.

Jeffrey then boasted about the attack on Twitter, using the alias “Pablo Escobar” after the Colombian drug lord who died in 1993 and printing the name and log-on details of a BPAS administrator.

Police arrested him on Friday at his home in Wednesbury, central England, after the abortion service raised the alarm.

Jeffrey admitted one charge of gaining unauthorised access to data and another of gaining unauthorised access to a computer with the intention of impairing its operation.
Judge Daphne Wickham described him as a “zealot with an anti-abortion campaign”.

She refused to grant him bail, saying that he was an “able hacker” who could target other organisations and ordering that he should be held in custody until sentencing at a later date.
On Tuesday two Britons with alleged ties to Anonymous were among five people charged in the United States in in high-profile cyberattacks after a leader of the group became an FBI informant.

Ryan Ackroyd, 23, of Doncaster, and Jake Davis, 29, of Lerwick, Shetland Islands, were both arrested last year in Britain.

The UK Daily Mail is reporting that A member of hacking group Anonymous who broke into the website of Britain’s biggest abortion provider may also have launched cyber attacks on the CIA, FBI and Houses of Parliament, a court heard yesterday.

James Jeffery, 27, targeted the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) because he ‘disagreed’ with the decisions of two women he knew to terminate their pregnancies.

The ‘zealot’ went on to steal 10,000 database records containing the personal details of vulnerable women, which he intended to publish, the court was told.
Anonymous is a group of loosely connected hackers from around the world, thought to be behind several recent security breaches, including the disabling of the CIA website in the United States and the theft of information from Japanese electronics giant Sony.

Described as an ‘able’ hacker, who boasted of his feat on Twitter, Jeffery also identified ‘vulnerabilities’ on a string of websites belonging to major international organisations.

Police are investigating alleged hacking involving websites for the FBI, CIA, West Midlands police, the Houses of Parliament, the US Navy, Arizona police and Spanish police, Westminster Magistrates’ Court was told.

An FBI spokesman said: ‘There have been attempts to hack into our website, which are under investigation.’

The defendant, who admitted two offences under the Computer Misuse Act, showed no emotion as prosecutors outlined the case against him.
The court heard how he set upon the BPAS website after two women, to whom he was close, had abortions.

The firm believes its computer servers were targeted 26,000 times over a six-hour period.

Jeffery also managed to deface its website with the Anonymous logo and a message that made his anti-abortion sentiment ‘quite clear’.
He was arrested after officers traced the BPAS breach to his address.

Judge Daphne Wickham refused an application for bail, saying: ‘You clearly are an able hacker. You will be remanded in custody.’

Jeffery, of Wednesbury, West Midlands, will be sentenced at Southwark Crown Court at a later date.

ROME (Reuters) – The Italian branch of the hackers group Anonymous took down the Vatican’s website on Wednesday, saying it was an attack on the Roman Catholic Church’s scandals and conservative doctrine.

The Vatican website http://www.vatican.va was inaccessible. A spokesman said he could not confirm that the crash was the work of the hackers group but said technicians were working to bring it back up.

A statement on the Italian website of the loosely-knit cyber-activists group accused the Church of being responsible for a long list of misdeeds throughout history, including the selling of indulgences in the 16th century and burning heretics during the Inquisition.

“Today, Anonymous has decided to put your site under siege in response to your doctrine, liturgy and the absurd and anachronistic rules that your profit-making organization spreads around the world,” the website said.

It also accused the Vatican of being “retrograde” in its interfering in Italian domestic affairs “daily.”

Anonymous, along with another group LulzSec, has taken credit for a number of high-profile hacking actions against companies and institutions, including the CIA.

Members claiming to be part of the formless Internet hacker group “Anonymous” took down three church websites on March 2, replacing their main pages with a clip from evolutionary biologist and atheist Richard Dawkins and posting a statement that branded all religion as a “sickness.”

“Let us be clear from the start: any kind of religion is a sickness to this world. A sickness that creates hate and intolerance, a sickness that brings people to wage war on their fellow people, a sickness that has come to this world long time ago, when mankind wasn’t educated, a sickness that brought false hope and suppression to those who believed and often even more terror and suppression to those who dared not to believe,” the message by Anonymous begins and continues to accuse religion and Christianity as being a source for most of the wars that have occurred throughout history.

It also identifies religion, along with the world’s governments, as being the main source of oppression and a force that keeps most people down while giving power to the select few.

It is difficult to ascertain if the attackers really were from the Anonymous group, who have no recognized form of leadership and do not adhere to a membership code of conduct. The group has previously shut down the FBI and Recording Industry Association of America websites in support of content-pirating websites, such as The Pirate Bay, and have been a driving force behind the “Occupy” movement.

A 30-minute long YouTube video, “Richard Dawkins: An Atheist’s Call to Arms,” was posted on the websites of Bethel Outreach International Church, Charlotte International Church, and Crossfire Ministries, all from North Carolina but seemingly chosen at random, in which Dawkins encourages non-believers to unite and stick up for their belief.

Anonymous dOes have a Twitter account, however, which has over 276,783 followers, and it announced the church attack in a tweet on Friday that read: “HACKED Reason:religious idiocy and foh dah lulz #Anonymous #AntiSec #OWS #ROOTED #DAWKINS.”

According to Digital Journal – WebProNews reports that the AnonymousIRC Twitter account announcd to its 276, 783 followers on Friday, attacks on three church websites. IB Times reports the first message, sent out at around 10 a.m. EST, read: “http://www.betheloic.org HACKED Reason:religious idiocy and foh dah lulz #Anonymous #AntiSec #OWS #ROOTED #DAWKINS.”
Two other tweets followed the first, announcing attacks on two other churches.

The hackers said religion is a sickness and left a message on the hacked websites that said:

Greetings fellow pirates,
Let us be clear from the start: any kind of religion is a sickness to this world. A sickness that creates hate and intolerance, a sickness that brings people to wage war on their fellow people, a sickness that has come to this world long time ago, when mankind wasn’t educated, a sickness that brought false hope and suppression to those who believed and often even more terror and suppression to those who dared not to believe.
Religions are authoritarian hierarchies, designed to dominate your free will. Religions are mind control.They’re power structures that aim to convince you to give away your power for the benefit of those who enjoy dominating people. When you subscribe to a religion, you enroll in a mindless minion training program. Religions don’t market themselves as such, but this is essentially how they operate. In case you ever wondered why religious teachings are invariably mysterious, confusing, and incongruent? This is no accident — it’s intentional.
We see religion pretty much the same way as we see many governments. Fear mongering and making lots of money,so a small group of ppl will become insanely rich, while the believing masses can eat dirt. As long as they are afraid that “omgomg god will come and strike great vengeance upon me” all is good.
To quote Encyclopedia Dramatica (bringing you answers to life, the universe and everything since last Thursday) on this issue:
»Religion is a severe mental illness created over 9000 years ago, at the
same time as the Earth. Since then, religion has been one of the biggest sources of drama, f—-try, and unwarranted self-importance in the world today, secondary only to the internet. It is responsible for such insanity as Christf-gs believing that beating someone half to death with a 2,000 year old book will heal them and Muslims believing that if they blow themselves up they will get 72 virgins. Even atheists are not immune to the psychotomimetic effects of religion; the mere mention of religion is enough to send any atheist into hours of butthurt sh-tfits.«
So people of the world, don’t let religion control your life. Don’t fight against each other for contrary beliefs.This world and our life can be a wonderful adventure, where you have the unique chance to help mankind and your fellow citizens. Where we can all work together to make this earth a better place for ourselves,our children and all those generations who will come after us. ^(;,;)^

The torrent of Facebook spam carrying pornographic and violent images that affected many users of the social network earlier this week wasn’t related to Fawkes, the new malware supposedly developed by Anonymous. In fact, Anonymous seems to have had nothing whatsoever to do with the attack, despite some security researchers initially suspecting otherwise.

“Some are experiencing an outbreak of pornography on Facebook. This is leading some to speculate that Anonymous is responsible for this, calling this outbreak the ‘Fawkes Virus.’ I assure you that Anonymous involvement with this is highly untrue,” according to a statement released on Tuesday to Pastebin by “AnonymousWiki.”

Security researchers had suspected that Anonymous might have been behind the Facebook spam since members of the hacktivist collective had recently threatened the social network. Notably, Razvan Livintz, an analyst at BitDefender, had said Friday that Anonymous has been preparing a hit on Facebook, using malware that it had developed and released in July. His observations were based in part on a video that surfaced on Anonymous Central Friday.

But, the pornographic image spam didn’t fit the Anonymous modus operandi, and furthermore the outbreak didn’t even appear to be new. “Over the past two weeks we’ve seen an increasing number of threats, based on the statistics provided by our social media security app Safego,” said George Petre, head of social media research for BitDefender, via email. “Most of these threats contained porn images or shocking images.”

CNN Reported it this way: Anonymous’ call for a massive attack on the New York Stock Exchange’s website was met Monday — but very, very briefly.

A group calling itself Anonymous, a name used by disparate groups of online “hactivists,” threatened to take down NYSE.com at 3:30 p.m. ET today as an extension of the “Occupy Wall Street” demonstrations that have continued into a fourth week.

The website was slow and then unavailable from about 3:35 p.m. to around 3:37 p.m, after which it returned to normal. Keynote, an Internet monitoring company, confirmed that NYSE.com slowed down during that time. Another tracking site, downforeveryoneorjustme.com, also registered a brief outage.

In a message that went out in early October through a video on YouTube, the group called for a “distributed denial of service” (DDoS) attack, which directs a flood of traffic to a website and temporarily crashes it by overwhelming its servers. It doesn’t actually involve any hacking or security breaches, and would have no effect on NYSE’s stock-trading systems.

Rich Adamonis, a spokesman from the NYSE, confirmed that trading was not impacted.

DDoS is a tool that Anonymous has employed successfully before, taking down MasterCard.com and Visa.com for several hours on Dec. 8, 2010. Monday’s take-down was decidedly less significant.

The five days notice that the hacktivist group gave NYSE may have been enough time for the stock exchange to prepare, perhaps by increasing its server capacity. NYSE’s Adamonis declined to comment further on the attack.

The YouTube video calling for today’s attack announced: “A new civil rights movement has begun. You now have an opportunity to make a difference. Join the protests. Organize your own. Watch online. Be a part of the movement.”

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________BACK STORY: According to PC Magazine: Some members of the Anonymous hacktivist collective are disputing the legitimacy of a weekend threat by another apparent Anonymous faction to “erase” the New York Stock Exchange “from the Internet on Oct. 10 as part of the ongoing Occupy Wall Street protest in New York City.

“On Oct. 10, NYSE shall be erased from the Internet. On Oct. 10, expect a day that will never, ever be forgotten,” warned a video message posted on TheAnonMessage YouTube channel.

Computerworld – The U.S. Department of Homeland Security today issued a somewhat unusual bulletin warning the security community about the planned activities of hacking collective Anonymous over the next few months.

The bulletin, issued by the DHS National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center (NCCIC), warns financial services companies especially to be on the lookout for attempts by Anonymous to “solicit ideologically dissatisfied, sympathetic employees” to their cause.

Anonymous has recently used Twitter to try and persuade dissatisfied employees within the financial sector to give them information and access. Though such attempts appear to have been largely unsuccessful so far, “unwilling coercion through embarrassment or blackmail may be a risk to personnel,” the bulletin warned.

The unclassified DHS communique is addressed broadly to those in charge of cybersecurity and critical infrastructure protection and also warns about new tools that Anonymous has said it plans to use in launching future attacks.

One of the attack tools highlighted in the alert is dubbed #RefRef, which is said to be capable of using a server’s resources and processing power to conduct a denial of service attack against itself.

“Anonymous has stated publicly that the tool will be ready for wider use by the group in September 2011,” the DHS said. “But though there have been several publicly available tools that claim to be versions of #RefRef, so far it’s unclear “what the true capabilities of #RefRef are.”

The bulletin also cites the so-called Apache Killer tool that can be used to launch denial of service attacks. The DHS alert also warns of three cyber attacks and civil protests it says are planned by Anonymous and affiliated groups.

The first attack, dubbed Occupy Wall Street (OWS) is scheduled for Sept. 17.

The so-called ‘Day of Rage’ protest was first announced by a group called Adbusters in July and is being actively supported by Anonymous. The organizers of OWS hope to get about 20,000 individuals to gather on Wall Street on that day to protest various U.S. government policies.

The protest is being coordinated through Adbuster’s website as well as via an Anonymous YouTube video that exhorts followers to “flood into lower Manhattan, set up tents, kitchens, peaceful barricades and occupy Wall Street for a few months,” the DHS noted in its alert.

Similar rallies targeting financial districts are being planned in Madrid, Milan, London, Paris and San Francisco, it said,

Adbusters is planning another protest in October. That event, to mark the 10th anniversary of war in Afghanistan, is slated to be held at the Washington DC National Mall.

The two other planned attacks by Anonymous that are highlighted in the bulletin are, Operation Facebook a November 11 protest targeting the social media site for its alleged privacy violations, and Project Mayhem, scheduled for Dec 21, 2012.

Though there has been little dialogue or hints about the specific tactics, techniques and procedures that Anonymous plans to employ for Project Mayhem there are indications that it could involve physical disruption and targeting of information systems.

The name Project Mayhem is derived from the movie Fight Club in which “the main character is ultimately responsible for destroying buildings belonging to major financial institutions with explosives,” the bulletin said.

The bulletin is testimony of sorts to the kind of attention that Anonymous has managed to attract following cyberattacks and related protests in recent years. The group has been associated with a string of high-profile attacks against organizations such as HB Gary, Booz-Allen Hamilton, and the Bay Area Rapid Transit agency

Though members of Anonymous are thought to have been associated with several “maliciously intolerant cyber and physical incidents” in the past, of late they have evolved to “what appears to be a hactivist agenda.”

“Anonymous has shown through recently reported incidents that it has members who have relatively more advanced technical capabilities who can also marshal large numbers of willing, but less technical, participants for DDOS activities,” the DHS said.

According to a PDF containing what purports to be a leaked psychological assessment of the leaders of LulzSec and Anonymous by the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit (which also profiles serial killers), Anonymous is not only not a collection of individuals, it’s a coherent group that poses a threat to national security.

Neither the FBI nor Dept. of Homeland Security have commented on the “leak,” which may be a fake according to the TechHerald, but seems to reflect accurately the thinking behind a series of DHS warning bulletins and crackdowns that have resulted in 75 raids and 16 arrests of Anonymous members just this year.